About the Author

The author spent his career as a Chemical Engineer working

in several locations around the world, and the sights and
background to this book owe much to that life. His view of the
Worlds ability to control the potential disasters highlighted in
this novel is not very optimistic.

Jonathon Rafferty

SERVATUR GAIAE

Copyright Jonathon Rafferty (2015)

The right of Jonathon Rafferty to be identified as author of this
work has been asserted by him in accordance with section 77 and
78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the
publishers.
Any person who commits any unauthorized act in relation to this
publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims
for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British
Library.

ISBN 978 1 78455 891 8 (Paperback)

ISBN 978 1 78455 892 5 (Hardback)
www.austinmacauley.com
First Published (2015)
Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd.
25 Canada Square
Canary Wharf
London
E14 5LB

Printed and bound in Great Britain

Acknowledgments
The many authors and publications that have tried to ensure
that people are made aware, on a fairly continuous basis, of
the ever increasing threats to our world, the subject matter of
this book.

Contents
CHAPTER 1
The Holiday
CHAPTER 2
Further Aegean Pleasures
CHAPTER 3
Brazilian Slash and Burn
CHAPTER 4
Pablos Close Call
CHAPTER 5
Pablos Escape
CHAPTER 6
Back in the Office
CHAPTER7
A logging problem in Africa
CHAPTER 8
How far does the problem stretch?
CHAPTER 9
Help from Outside
CHAPTER 10
The Moonlight Flit
CHAPTER 11
Farewell to Arbreville
CHAPTER 12
Organise a Scientific Expedition
CHAPTER 13
Start of the Expedition
CHAPTER 14
The Visitor
CHAPTER 15
Meeting Forest Tribes
CHAPTER 16
Out of the Jungle
CHAPTER 17
Back to England

11
30
35
42
51
58
69
79
85
99
103
108
117
140
161
175
181

CHAPTER 18
The Prime Ministerial Plan
CHAPTER 19
The Prime Ministers Plan B
CHAPTER 20
Start Spreading the News
CHAPTER 21
Becoming Tourists
CHAPTER 22
Back Home
CHAPTER 23
The Plan
CHAPTER 24
End Game

194
205
215
232
246
260
267

CHAPTER 1
The Holiday

John Fenwick looked again at the beautiful naked body of his

wife Angela, stretched out on the boats cabin roof in front of
him, sunbathing and enjoying the gentle warm breeze that was
playing over her body, as they sailed through the sparkling
azure waters of the Aegean Sea under a cloudless, intensely
blue sky. Even after two children and at twenty-nine years old,
her figure was still the envy of her friends, and delighted John
every time he saw her. As he looked at her, he reflected on the
great happiness they shared together and marvelled at the
enduring love they felt for each other, the strength of which
almost scared him at times.
He was still surprised at the change that seemed to have
come over her in the two days since theyd flown into the
Greek island of Paros to pick up their borrowed yacht. She
had somehow managed to have put all the cares and worries
of her normal life behind her almost immediately after theyd
arrived, and it seemed to John as though a magician had
waved a magic wand and Angela was again the girl he had
just married all those years ago.
For his part he, too, had felt an upsurge of joie-de-vivre
and a renewed zest for life since they had started their holiday.
Was it really only two days ago?

11

They were on a short holiday, a fairly belated celebration

of their seventh wedding anniversary, which had suddenly and
rather unexpectedly been made possible by her parents
offering to look after their two young children for the week.
They had also agreed it would be an ideal occasion to try
for a third child.
John was the Principal Environmental Scientist with the
Ecological Worldwide Threats Institute, official acronym
EWTI, but long since nick-named the Ecowotsit by all who
worked for it. Their work was very wide ranging, and as the
rather unwieldy name suggested, they were part of a
worldwide organisation affiliated to, but not controlled by the
UN, that tried to prevent or at least, correct ecological
problems anywhere in the world, though working
predominantly in their own countries.
At thirty, John had had a rapid rise in the department,
having used his original University degree in Zoology as a
springboard into Ecology, in which he had taken a second
degree.
Due to his job demanding a great deal of mental effort but
not a lot of physical activity, he kept himself fit with a lot of
fairly active leisure pursuits, playing squash and tennis
regularly when his job allowed and going on weekend walks
or swims in the local baths with Angela. He thus had a welltoned body but without appearing to be particularly well
muscled. At just over six foot tall and of a dark complexion,
he certainly always appeared to be in the best of health, as
indeed he was.
He had met Angela at University where she had been
studying Botany. They had hit it off immediately, meeting
initially on a tennis court which game they both enjoyed, and
then found they shared other interests, notably swimming and
sailing, when the opportunity arose. The interests had very
quickly been followed by a passionate love affair that had
resulted in them being remarkably happily married for the last
seven years. She had taken a career break to have their
children, but had definite plans to resume the research work
12

she had been engaged in when the children were old enough.
To this end she had kept up with developments in her field as
much as she could while managing the demands of the small
children. This holiday was thus a very welcome break for her
from her very demanding double role.
Now, while also enjoying the warm morning sunshine and
the gentle breeze that was blowing Angelas auburn hair about
in a slightly distracting manner, John thought back to the start
of their voyage two days ago. They had set off to explore
some of the islands in the Dodecanese group with no
particular route planned, and now on the second morning of
their holiday, he re-lived the time since theyd arrived as
though watching a video playback.
It had been late in the afternoon the day before yesterday
when they had finally got through all the formalities and
moved onto their boat, very kindly lent at short notice by one
of Johns old university friends from the sailing club. They
had decided to stay in the marina that night and start their
voyage the next morning. So that afternoon, both of them
enjoying the unaccustomed suns heat from the cloudless blue
sky, they did some shopping for provisions for their trip and
then decided to end the day with a visit to a good quayside
restaurant. There they enjoyed an excellent fresh fish dinner
with some local wine, which, while unlikely to feature in a
wine merchants list at home, nevertheless, proved a very
pleasant accompaniment to the meal. John smiled as he
remembered how they had walked back to the boat, with his
arm round Angelas shoulders, both feeling blissfully happy.
Then yesterday morning the day had dawned in classic
Aegean style with another absolutely clear blue sky, again
with a gentle warm breeze that inspired one to get up and
catch the day in case it turned out to be just a dream. So John
and Angela had had a quick breakfast on their boat, had gone
ashore to buy a few last minute items from the market and
then got away to a fairly early start. About mid-day, after
theyd been sailing for about an hour or two, they had passed

13

a small beach with a large restaurant sign above a low wooden

building.
Shall we give that a try for lunch? John had asked,
Saves us doing anything and I feel a bit lazy today.
So do I, so port your helm skipper and heave-to by
yonder taverna! she replied with a laugh.
The taverna was surprisingly good for such a small
coastal village, so they took their time enjoying a local lamb
delicacy, well laced with rosemary and garlic, and an
unexpectedly strong red wine, apparently (according to the
menu) from the proprietors own vineyard. They followed this
with a baklava, the honey of which was beautifully scented
with the local wild flowers on which the bees obviously
thrived. Afterwards, they had a quick look around the little
village, and bought a few items from the local shops.
On their way back to the boat John said:
Just as well they dont breathalyse us sailors in these
parts Im damn sure I wouldnt pass!
Am I going to be safe, entrusting myself to a drunken
sailor? she asked in mock alarm.
Well at least until I get you onto the boat, then itll
depend on how fast you can climb the rigging! he had
laughingly joked, giving her a bit of a hug as they walked with
his arm round her waist.
Once back on the boat, they got under way in a leisurely
fashion. After sailing for about half an hour or so, they had
seen a deserted sandy cove, about a hundred yards wide,
nestling between high rock cliffs, which provided some shade
on one side of the cove.
Why dont we stop here for an after-lunch siesta and a
swim? John had suggested.
Great idea, though I hope the amount of sailing weve
done today hasnt tired you too much, otherwise were never
going to get very far on this trip!
I may not be Columbus, but I think I can manage a bit
more than a couple of hours, cheeky!
14

He had manoeuvred the boat into the cove and anchored

in about six feet of crystal clear water, a short distance from
the shore. Angela had gone below to change and get some
towels, and as she was coming back up to the deck, had heard
the splash as John dived into the water. As she came up to
where John had been she saw his shirt and shorts lying on the
deck where he had just dropped them before diving in.
John having swum a short distance away had turned to
face the boat and was standing on the bottom.
Come on, hed called, the water feels absolutely
glorious!
Shed dived in and swam towards him. As she came up to
him she saw that he hadnt got his swimming trunks on.
John, why havent you got your trunks on? Supposing
someone sees you?
He laughed, having always chided her on her somewhat
prudish attitude to nudity.
And just who do you think is suddenly going to appear
here? Those cliffs could only be climbed by mountaineers,
and I dont see many of them around. No, the only visitors are
likely to come by boat like us, and if they see our boats
already here, theyll go on and find their own beach hell
weve passed dozens of coves with nice beaches already. Go
on: be a devil for once, get your kit off and discover what a
terrifically sensuous experience youve been missing all your
life!
She hesitated for a moment, then, looking around as if to
reassure herself that there really wasnt anyone else there, also
feeling a bit less inhibited than usual due to the wine theyd
had for lunch and the beautiful peace of the place, decided to
do it.
Okay, here goes, she said, but if Im ravaged by the
pirates that are about to descend on us, itll be all your fault!
A few seconds later, and feeling a bit of a daredevil, she,
too, was standing naked in the sea, noticing and immediately
15

beginning to enjoy the unusual sensations of the water playing

around her body without the constraints of her bikini.
John delighted and somewhat surprised that shed stripped
off at all, had said: Here, give me those, Ill put them on the
deck for you.
After hed done so, they swam around for a bit near the
boat.
Im glad you persuaded me to take my bikini off this
really does feel terrific such a marvellous sensation of
freedom, perhaps helped a little by the feeling of being a bit of
a devil for defying the lifelong and well drilled in
conditioning of modesty. Well, the hell with modesty now, I
say, this nakedness is just great!
They then headed for the shore; John getting there first,
had turned to wait for Angela to join him. As shed walked
out of the water hed said:
Now I see where the ancients got the idea of Venus
arising from the waves you look absolutely gorgeous like
that.
Thinking that that was the most genuine compliment hed
paid her in quite a while she was slightly taken aback, but just
managed a quick, Well, thank you, kind sir! by way of
reply, accompanied by a little mock curtsey, before he had
caught her in his arms and kissed her passionately.
When they broke apart, shed said, a bit breathlessly: If
thats what I get for spending a few minutes swimming naked,
I think Ill stop wearing clothes altogether
Hed laughed and said, Lets walk along to the shady bit
over there we dont want to get sunburnt on our first day.
So taking her hand, theyd walked leisurely along the waters
edge, and then sat down in the shade.
After a few minutes shed said: You know, I think this
nudity business could be habit-forming. Feeling the
occasional bit of breeze blow round your body, and not having
a tight soggy costume clinging to you really is a marvellous

16

sensation; very sensuous in its way, though not necessarily

sexually sensuous.
We could soon change that, he said, with a suggestive
laugh, reaching for her.
I hate to be practical at a time like this, lover, but sand in
tender places can be a distinct turn off.
Hed laughed, Youre right, of course. I guess I can wait
till we get back to the boat
Then after a slight pause and completely changing the
subject hed continued:
I wonder how your parents are coping with the kids. It
was really kind of them to offer to take them for the whole
week to let us get away and have this holiday our first alone
in, what, five years or so.
Yes maybe we could take them out to a theatre and
dinner or maybe pay for an away weekend for them, by way
of a thank you, she said.
The rest of the afternoon had passed peacefully, with
occasional chatter between swims, general messing around,
collecting a few unusual shells, and lazing on the beach,
during the course of which they decided to spend the night at
anchor in the cove, feeling it should be perfectly safe as they
were quite a bit off the beaten track and hadnt seen another
boat or any sign of anyone since theyd been there.
Eventually, Angela had realised it was time to get back to the
boat as there was a meal to prepare, so they had swum back to
the boat.
When they were back on board, she had said: You go
and shower while I make a start on dinner, always providing I
can manage to operate all the strange equipment in the kitchen
er, sorry, I mean of course the galley, and had pretended
to slap her wrist for the mistake.
Well thanks, hed replied, but before I go, I presume a
nice, cold, large G & T would ease the slog of cooking? Im
going to have one, anyway.
17

Mmm yes please, that would make the cook very

happy, thank you.
Having got the drinks and sampled his fairly generously,
hed gone off to have his shower.
When hed come back from showering still towelling
himself down, he saw shed donned an apron that covered her
front, but nothing else. Seeing him looking at her shed said:
I didnt want any painful accidents while cooking. Then
giggling a little and wriggling her bottom at him shed added:
Do you think my bum looks big in this and just had time
to jump clear of his lunging arms.
Your bum looks grrrrrr gorgeous, eminently
molestable and an absolutely perfect size in that, anything else
or preferably nothing at all, come to that! However, as I am
still able (just!) to demonstrate remarkable self-control, Ill let
you go and have your shower and carry on with this. What
needs doing next, apart from you, that is?
I am definitely for afters long afters in this case, shed
said with a laugh, so you could do the salad and get the steak
ready. Ive done the starter. Its that readymade hors
doeuvres we bought that just required frying with a bit of
garlic, if I understood what the shopkeeper was indicating.
Either way, it smells very nice.
Shed thrown him the apron and headed for the shower.
When shed come back, still drying her hair with the
towel, hed laid the small table in the cockpit, stood aside to
let her slip onto the built-in bench seat and gone back into the
galley.
A little surprise, I hope, hed said as he came back out
and put a bottle of champagne and two glasses on the table.
Oh, lovely! shed said, and yes, it is a surprise. I didnt
know youd got that.
Hed poured the two glasses, and then looking at her had
said:
Heres to you, my darling. Just in case I hadnt told you
lately, I love you very much, and thank you for our seven-and18

a-bit wonderful years together. I still sometimes wonder at my

luck at you agreeing to marry me.
Seeing he was being serious for a moment, shed replied:
I think the luck was on both sides, because I have always
been more than happy that we got married, and turned to kiss
him.
Theyd enjoyed their dinner, watching a spectacular
sunset, and chatting casually. Eventually hed said:
Ill get that gooey-looking cream pastry thing you
bought for sweet in the village its in the fridge, isnt it?
Yes, just behind the bottles of wine.
Okay, hed said, and a few moments later, came back
with the champagne and poured out the last two glasses,
saying: I think this should be finished first before it goes
flat.
Hed then gone back for the sweet, which hed put on
small flat plates, but which seemed determined to slide off as
soon as possible.
As he came back to the table, carefully balancing the
plates, and then leaning forward to place one in front of her,
hed said:
Theyre very slippery little damn! The confection had
slid off the plate, landed against her chest, and slid slowly
down into her lap.
Oooh! she cried, as she felt the cold whipped cream
land on her, and a second or so later, as she recovered from
the slight shock said:
Ive heard of people who get their kicks from covering
each other with cream or some such, and then licking it off,
but Before she could finish, hed said:
What a lovely idea here, Ill lick you clean, and
before she could reply, hed started to lick the cream off her
chest, spending a suspiciously long time ensuring that none
remained on her right breast before moving further down.

19

Shed suddenly found the sensation delightfully erotic and

moaned a little with pleasure before saying:
Are you sure that was an accident? Then, after another
slight moan, Do make sure you do a good job of cleaning it
all upoooh your tongue
I cant get it all from here, had come his muffled reply.
Wed better get onto the bed in the cabin, hed continued as
he extricated himself from between her and the edge of the
table, and stood to help her out.
My, there must be something erotic in that licking
business it seems to have got you going pretty well, shed
said, with a slight laugh, looking pointedly at his sturdy
jutting erection. Lead me to it, lover.
Once in the cabin, shed lain on the bed, arms and legs
spread-eagled.
I think youd better finish that cleaning job, which you
seemed to be enjoying, shed said, with a slight smirk.
You didnt seem too averse to it yourself, hed
countered, kneeling on the bed beside her, now, where had I
got to?
I think youd better start again, just to make sure of it,
shed said, her voice going a bit husky as the desire mounted
in her body.
Hed leant forward and kissed her passionately on her
open mouth, to which shed responded with her tongue, before
hed moved down to start caressing her breasts with his
tongue, and licking off imaginary traces of cream.
He then slowly moved down her body, every touch of his
lips and tongue being rewarded with more gentle moans of
pleasure, and the occasional Oh Yes!
For his part, feeling the silken smoothness and softness of
her skin as he kissed and fondled her with his hands added
further intensity to his excitement and desire.
When hed reached her soft brown triangle, hed pulled
her knees up off the bed and opened her thighs wide, before
gently kissing the insides of her thighs, and then moving
20

slowly down towards her mound and sliding his tongue in to

tease her clitoris, the while reaching up to fondle her breasts.
His caresses were fairly quickly rewarded with more of
her little moans of pleasure and thrustings of her hips towards
him then:
Come into me now or Ill come without you! shed
urged breathlessly.
Being in the same state himself, hed quickly moved
himself on top of her, and slid his throbbing penis gently into
her, slowly and gently burying most of its length into her, as
shed arched her back and thrust her mound against him,
adding to the exquisite sensations he felt.
Shed felt the familiar, though this time more intense hot
sensation start somewhere deep inside her, and spread
throughout her body like lapping waves, lapping and
overlapping until the waves concentrated around the rigid
pillar thrusting ever deeper into her, until she could contain
them no longer, and had her crashing, all-consuming orgasm,
clutching him to her and writhing and thrusting with the
uncontrollable power of it. He, for his part, could not
remember her ever coming with such intensity before, and the
excitement of this triggered his own climax, so that both
experienced a long-lasting ecstasy together.
Several moments later, when both had recovered slightly,
he said: Darling, that was one of the best ever!
Mmm, wasnt it, though; you really hit my jackpot that
time. Ive still got a deliciously floaty-on-air feeling, and
everything is tingling even my toes are still curled!
Hed kissed her lightly and then after a pause had said:
You know, you really are marvellous, but I need a little time
to get my breath back, and then perhaps we should have the
other half.
Mmm, that would be nice I can feel a new little stirring
down there just at the thought, even though Sir Percy has
slipped out. Yes, hurry up and get him standing again, I want
to do that all over again.

21

Rolling on to his back hed said:

Well, maybe if youd like to minister to him a little in the
lovely ways you have, hell oblige.
Alright, but wait a minute, shed said, getting up from
the bed and smiling at his slightly puzzled look. Back in a
mo.
Shed come back a minute later and said:
Whats good for the goose should work equally well for
the gander, and so saying had sploshed the other cream
pastry that shed hidden behind her back right into his groin
and spread it around a bit. Besides, shed added, I didnt
get to try any of this pudding first time round!
It was then his turn to writhe around as shed knelt over
him and set about licking the cream off his body, eventually
concentrating on his penis. As she knew full well, it wasnt
going to take much of this sort of attention to really get him
going, and she was slightly surprised at how arousing she
found it herself. It wasnt long before her efforts were
rewarded by seeing he was keenly ready for more action.
If you dont stop that now, Ill come all over the place
and youll be left lamenting hed said, breathing hard, then
rolling over and climbing round behind her. This time well
give the missionary a miss and have a bit of the canine
position. That usually reaches the parts that other ways dont,
and generally to very good effect!
Oh, yes please, I love it when you enter me from beh
the rest had been lost by the prolonged moan of pure pleasure
she let out as hed entered her purposefully but gently again.
This time hed leant over her, and with one hand fondled her
breasts and with the other gently rubbed her mound, causing
her to arch her back even more in an attempt to take as much
of him and as deeply as possible, into her.
The sensations caused by the fondling of his hands, had
seemed to send little lines of tingles right through her body,
22

gradually focussing somewhere deep inside her from which

those delicious waves of feeling again had started to lap all
round her, holding her, and diffusing right through every part
of her until they had all concentrated on his thrusting into her
and again shed come with a climax that had blotted
everything from her consciousness except for wave after
marvellous wave of intoxicating pleasure.
The almost animal moans of pleasure that came from her
had caused him to thrust into her ever harder and had
overwhelmed such little control as he still had in holding back
until she came. He could feel his climax building and
suffusing through his body until he could hold it back no
longer and hed then let himself drown in the spasms of pure
pleasure that fired through his body, causing him to thrust into
her even faster, thus adding to her orgasm. Again shed come
with a climax that had blotted everything from her
consciousness except for wave after marvellous wave of
intoxicating pleasure.
After the final surge of his climax, hed gently helped her
to lie out flat on the bed and had lain on top of her, panting for
breath.
Darlingthat waswow! shed murmured, coming
gently back to earth.
That really waswasohyou darling hed replied
somewhat incoherently, burying his face in the hair at the
back of her neck, and kissing her there.
After a few moments, hed rolled over to lie beside her on
the bed. Theyd lain resting, entirely satisfied, their desires
thoroughly sated.
I hope baby number three appreciates all the hard work
going into its making, said John, recovering from his
exertions a little later.
Its not an it its a he this time, shed chided him,
and, anyway, I havent heard too many complaints about the
hard work so far!

23